Machine for scrubbing or washing meat



(No Model.) V I 3 Sheets-Sheet 1;

w. w. MIGHNER.

MACHINE FOR SURUBBINGOR WASHING MEAT.

Patented Feb.. 18, 1896.

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' W. W. MIGHNER.

MACHINE FOR SGRUBBING 0R WASHING MEAT. No. 554,707. Patented Feb; 18,1896.

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W. W. MIGHNER. MACHINE FOR SGRUBBING 0B WASHING MEAT.

Patented Feb. 18, 1896.

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ANPREW EGRANAM.HOTO-UTNQWASNINFTUKDC NITED STATES ATENT Fries.

WILLIAM IV. MICHNER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.-

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 554,707, dated February18, 1896.

Application filed April 15, 1895. Serial No. 545,701. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM W. MICHNER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for Scrubbingor IVashing Pieces of Meat and other Articles, of which the following isa full, clear, and exact specification.

My invention relates more particularly to I machines for scrubbing orwashing irregularshaped articles of any description; but it is moreespecially designed for scrubbing or washing irregular-shaped pieces ofmeat such, for example, as hams.

Owing to the irregular shape of a ham and to the wide variation of suchshape in different hams, considerable difficulty has been experienced inscrubbing the ham all over uniformly, some of the parts being rubbedwith excessive abrasion, while others are left uncleansed.

The primary object of my invention, therefore, is to provide means forquickly and effectually scrubbing or washing irregularshaped objects ofthe described nature on all sides,whereby especially such articles ashams may be rapidly and thoroughly cleansed of all foreign matter andscraps of loose meat which adhere to them prior to smoking.

IVith these ends in view my invention consists in certain features ofnovelty by which the said object and certain other objects hereinafterdescribed are attained, all as fully explained with reference to theaccompanying drawings and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the said drawings, Figure 1 is a plan View, partly broken away, of myimproved apparatus. Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof. Fig. 3 is avertical transverse section taken on the line 3 3, Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is adetail sectional view taken on the line 4 4, Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is avertical longitudinal section of the feeding end of the machine; andFig. 6 is an enlarged transverse sectional view taken on the line 6 6,Fig. 2.

I In describing my improvements I will refer to the washing or scrubbingof meat and especially hams, as this is one of the most important usesto which my invention may be put; but it will nevertheless be understoodindicated by the arrow 11.

though it is more especially designed for washing irregular articles.

In carrying out my invention I employ a number of brushes or otherscrubbers, which are arranged to touch the ham or article to be scrubbedon all sides and between which the ham is carried by a carrier orendless conveyer of any suitable form andwhile streams of water areplaying upon the brushes. The conveyer or carrier'is so constructed thatit will first carry the ham into engagement with one of the brushes inone position, and after having carried it past such brush or scrubberwill automatically change the position of the ham, so as to present anew surface to the next scrubber or brush.

The brushers or scrubbers are so arranged and constructed that they willhave a surface movement in a direction contrary to the movement of theham and at the same time will be deflectible bodily in the direction ofmovement of the ham, so that they may yield to accommodate themselves tounusual irregularities in the form of the 11am and while doing so engagewith the forward and rearward sides of such irregularities.

Referring to the drawings, 1 2 represent a pair of chains running in ahorizontal direction and having lugs 3 and constituting the initialcarrier for conveying the ham 4 into engagement with the first uprightbrush or scrubber, 11, and first horizontal brush or scrubber, 5. Thesechains 1 2 run over two pairs of twin wheels 6 7, journaled in brackets8 9, respectively secured to the under side of the table portion 10 ofthe machine or to any other suitable support. The ham to be washed orscrubbed is placed across these chains 1 2 in the manner shown in dottedlines in Fig. 1, with the butt-end of the ham projecting over the chainon one side and the shank projecting over the chain on the other side.The lugs 3 will force the ham in the direction of the arrows in Fig. 1and carry the butt-end thereof first against the scrubber 11, which ismounted on a vertical axis and revolves about such axis in a directioncon trary to the line of movement of the ham, as This brush or scrubber11 will first engage the forward side of the butt of the ham, and as theham moves forward the scrubber 11 will be deflected on an arc of acircle in the direction of movement of the ham, and by the pressure ofthe ham, so that the ham may pass the brush while the latter isrevolving in contact therewith and without producing excessive abrasion,and it will be seen that before the 11am entirely leaves the brush thebutt-end of the ham will have brought its rear rounded side as well asits forward side and extreme end into contact with the brush.

As a means of eifecting the described conduct or action of the brush orscrubber 11, I employ a pair of horizontally-swinging or oscillatoryarms 12 13, in the inner ends of which the shaft 14 of the brush 11 isjournaled and to the outer ends of which is socured by means ofset-screws 15 a vertical shaft 16, whereby the brush may rotate and atthe same time oscillate bodily with the arms 12 13. The shaft 16 isjournaled in a box or sleeve 17 secured to the table 10 and is heldagainst downward movement in any suitable manner, such as by means of apin 18 resting upon the upper end of the box 1.7. Both the shafts 14 16pass through the table 10 and are geared together by a pinion 19,rigidly secured to the shaft 14, and a gearwheel 20, loosely journaledon the shaft 16, whereby the shaft 14 may oscillate bodily around theshaft 16 while the pinion 19 is constantly in mesh with the gear-wheel20, the table 10 being provided with a circular slot 21 for the movementof the shaft 14. Al'- ter the brush 11 is released by the ham it isreturned to its normal position by any suit able meanssuch, forinstance, as a spring 22, which may be coiled about the shaft 16 andsecured to the box 17 and to such shaft in a well-known manner, so as torotate the shaft 16 and carry the arms 12 13 with the brush 11 to theirnormal position, the rear end of the slot 21 acting as a stop to limitthe return movement of the brush.

The gear-wheel 20, after rotating the scrubber 11, may be driven in anysuitable way. I have shown such gear-wheel as provided with a beveledpinion 23, which is geared to the driving-shaft 24 by means of alongitudinal shaft 25 having a bevel-pinion 26 at one end meshing withthe pinion 23, and a similar pinion 27 at its other end meshing with abevel-pinion 28 on the shaft 24, the shaft 25 being supported below thetable 10 by any suitable hangers 29, as shown in Fig. 2. Thedriving-shaft 24 derives its motion from a sprocket 30 secured thereon,which is driven by a belt (not shown) from any suitable source of power.

After the ham passes the first brush or scrubber 11, it is brought intoengagement with the first horizontal brush or scrubber 5, which rotatesagainst the ham and brushes or scrubs the major part of the forward sideas well as the top and rear side of the ham.

This scrubber 5 is journaled in the lower ends of a pair of swingingarms 31, which are rigidly secured by set-screws 32 or otherwise to arocker-shaft mounted in standards or pillow-blocks 34, whereby the brush5 may swing on the are of a circle and thus permit the ham to raise anddeflect it. As the brush comes down on the rear side of the ham whilethe ham is receding from the brush, it will, of course, scrub that sideas far down as the periphery of the brush extends, notwithstanding thereceding movement of theham.

The brush 5 is rotated on its own axis by means of a gear-wheel 41journaled loosely upon the shaft and meshing with a pinion 39 of theshaft 40 of the brush 5, the gearwheel 41 being independent of the shaft33, but concentric therewith, whereby the two may rotate independently,and at the same time the pinion 39 willremain in contact or engagementwith the gear-wheel 41, notwithstanding the oscillation or revolution ofthe brush 5 about the shaft The gear-wheel 41 is driven by a chain-beltor other suitable means 42 passing over a sprocket-wheel 44 secured tothe gear-wheel. 41. by means of a hollowjournal or sleeve 43, the latterbeing journaled in the pillow-block 34. The gravitation of the brush 5to its normal position may be accelerated in any well-known manner-such,for instance, as by means of a spring, which may be in the form of acoil 45 surrounding and being secured to the rocker-shaft 2-53 at oneend and at its other end to the standard 34 or some other stationarymember-and the downward oscillation of the arms 31. may be limited bymeans of a stop 46 secured to one of the standards 34 and projectinginto the path of one of the arms 31, as shown in Fig. 6.

The chain-carriers l 2, after conveying the ham edgewise past the brush5, pass clownward through openings 35 in the table, and consequentlycease to propel the ham forward. The forward movement of the ham iscontinued from this point 011, however, by means of a second carrier orconveyer 36, consisting preferably of an ordinary chain, which, like thechains 1 2, is provided with lugs or hooks 37 or other means ofattachment to the ham. The lugs 3 are turned or inclined rearwardly, sothat when passing around the forward wheels 8 and leaving the ham theywill not dig into the meat, but the hooks or lugs 37 are turnedforwardly in order that the thong or string usually secured in the shankof the ham may be placed over the hook 37 for compelling the ham tofollow the carrier 36 beyond the terminal of the chains 1 2. Anotherpurpose of the hooks 37 is to prevent the ham from being pushed endwisewhen it comes into engagement with the first brush 11. It will thus beseen that when the ham reaches the terminal of the chains 1 2 thecarrier 36 will continue its movement end on along the table 10 towardthe succeeding scrubbers or brushes. The first of these succeedingscrubbers or brushes are preferably arranged in pairs in a horizontalposition transversely of the line of movement of the carrier 36, and oneabove the other, as shown more clearly in Figs. 2 and 6. The upper one,38, of the scrubbers of this pair is, like the brushor scrubber 5,journaled in a pair of swinging arms 31 secured by set-screws or othersuitable devices 32 to a rocker-shaft 33 journaled in standards orpillow-blocks 34 mounted upon the table 10 or other part of the machine,and, like the brush 5, said brush 38 is rotated by means of a pinion 39secured to the shaft 40 thereon and meshing with a gearwheel 41, whichis journaled loosely upon the shaft 33 or otherwise mounted so as to beindependent of such shaft and yet be concentric therewith, whereby thebrush 38 may revolve or oscillate about the shaft 33 without disengagingthe gears 39 41, as before described with reference to the brush 5. Thegear-wheel 41 is driven by the same chain 42 which drives thesprocket-wheel 44, such gear 41 being provided with a neck or hollowjournal 43 journaled in. the pillow-block 34 and carrying asprocket-wheel 44 at its outer end, with which the chain 42 engages.Gravity is assisted in returning the brush 38 to its normal position bymeans of a spring 45 secured to the shaft 33 in the manner beforedescribed with reference to the spring 45, and the downward movement oroscillation of the arms 31 is limited by a stop 46 secured to one of thestandards 34.

Mounted immediately below the brush 38 is a second brush or scrubber 47,which, however, is mounted in stationary bearings 48 below the table 10in an opening 49 formed in the table, the brush being so arranged that aconsiderable portion of its upper periphery will project through suchopening 49 above the table and come in contact with the ham forcleansing the under side thereof as the carrier 36 pulls the ham betweenthe two brushes 38 47. The brush 47 is rotated, however, like the brush38 and in the same directionthat is to say, opposite to the line ofmovement of the ham, as shown by the arrows in Fig. 2. This rotation ofthe brush 47 may be conveniently effected by providing the shaft 50 ofthe brush with a sprocket 51, with which engages the lower fold of thesprocket-chain 42, the chain being held taut and in engagement with thesprocket 51 by means of a spring-actuated or other suitablebelt-tightener 52.

The mechanism thus described, it will be seen, will clean both the topand bottom sides as well as the butt of the ham, and will partiallyclean its edges, and nowin order that the edges of the ham may bethoroughly scrubbed before leaving the machine, I cause the ham to passbetween a pair of Vertically-arranged brushes or scrubbers 53 54, whichare arranged in close proximity on opposite sides of the carrier 36, soas to come in engagement with the narrowest part of the shank as well asthe wider portions of the ham. These brushes 53 54 like the brush 11rotate about their axis against the ham and in a direction opposite tothe line of movement to the latter, and are also deflectible or movablewith and outwardly from the ham, whereby the wider portions thereof maypass between them without being severely abraded.

The brushes 53 54 and their means of operation are similar inconstruction and operation to the brush 11 and its operating mechanism,as will be more clearly seen upon reference to Fig. 3. Each of thesebrushes 53 54 is driven by a bevel-pinion 23, journaled loosely upon ashaft 16, and being secured to a gear 20 meshing with a pinion 19secured to the shaft 14 of the brush, the shaft 14 being, like the shaft14 of the brush 11, journaled in the arms 12 13, which are rigidlysecured to the shaft 16, the latter being journaled in a vertical sleeve17 secured to the table 10. The shaft 14 of the brushes 53 54 passthrough circular slots 21 in the table. The brushes are returned totheirnormal positions by springs 22 mounted and arranged like thesprings 22.

Rotation is imparted to the pinions 23 in opposite directions by meansof beveled gears 55 secured to the driving-shaft 24, which latter alsodrives the chain 42 by means of a sprocket 56.

The carrier 36 passes over a pair of sprocketwheels 57 58 mounted atopposite ends of the machine, and projecting upwardly through slots inthe table 10, as shown more clearly in Figs. 1 and 5. The rearsprocket-wheel 58 at the feeding end of the machine is mounted upon thesame shaft 59 which carries the sprocket-wheel 7, while the other one ofthese wheels, 57, is mounted upon a shaft 60, which derives its motionfrom the driving-shaft 24 through the intermediary of a cross-shaft 61having a miter-gear 62 at each end meshing with the gear 28 on thedriving-shaft 24 and a gear 63 on the shaft 60, respectively.

Tater or other cleansing liquid is supplied to the brushes by means ofspray-pipes 64 leading thereto from a common supply-pipe 65 and beingsupported at the rear side of each brush in any suitable manner. Inorder that the water and foreign substances washed from the meat may bereadily carried off, the table 10 is slightly inclined toward thefeeding end of the machine, as indicated in Fig. 2, and such end isprovided with a transverse trough 66 for catching and carrying oi therefuse. with flanges or side pieces 67.

If desired, a shield 68 may be projected partly across the first brush11 in order to guide the ham to the proper position in the event itshould not be accurately placed upon the carrier 1 2 in the firstinstance.

At the delivery end of the machine is arranged a shield consisting oftwo plates 69,

The sides of the table are providedone on each side of the carrier 36.These plates 69 project from the table upwardly and downwardly aroundthe Wheel 57, so that when the ham reaches the delivery end of the tableit will be elevated from the chain 36 and shielded from damage, andat'the same time the thong will be released from the hooks 37 and theham permitted to drop off, or, if desired, to be removed by hand.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new therein, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A machine for the purpose described, having in combination a numberof scrubbers arranged at different intervals, means for conveying thearticle to be scrubbed past one scrubber and a second conveying devicecontinuing beyond said first conveying means and also beyond thesucceeding scrubbers and having means of attachment to the article,substantially as set forth.

2. A machine for the purpose described, having in combination a numberof scrubbers arranged at diiferent intervals, a carrier for conveyingthe article to be scrubbed past one of said scrubbers, and a secondcarrier having means for attachment to the end of said article forconveyingit past the succeeding scrubbers in a different relativeposition, substantially as set forth.

A machine for the purpose described,

having in combination a number of scrubbers,

past the succeeding scrubber, substantially as set forth.

4. A machine for the purpose described, having in combination a pair ofscrubbers, an endless carrier having rearwardly-projcct ing lugs forconveying the article to be scrubbed past the first scrubbers, a secondcarrier having forwardly-projecting hooks traveling in unison with thefirst carrier and continuing beyond the succeeding scrubbers,substantially as set forth.

5. A machine for the purposedescribed, having in combination a table, avertically arranged, rotating, bodily-oscillatory brush arranged at oneend of said table, a horizontally arranged rotating, bodily oscillatorybrush arranged across said table, a carrier extending past said brushes,a pair of horizontally-arranged rotating, bodily-oscillatory brushesarranged. above and below the table respective y, and transverselythereof, a pair of vertically-arranged, rotating,bodily-oscillatorybrnshes arranged beyond said first pair of brushes,and a carrier extending beyond said first carrier and beyond said pairsof brushes, substantially as set forth.

6. A machine for the purpose described,

W. XV. MICIINER. \Vitnesses F. A. lIoPKINs, EDNA B. J OHNSON.

